HONG KONG: China’s yuan weakened against the US dollar on Friday, slipping from a one-month high as Gulf tensions continued to buoy safe-haven flows into the greenback.
The yuan was 0.06 percent lower at 6.7752 to the dollar, its second down day to further pull back from its one-month high reached on Wednesday.
The offshore yuan traded at 6.7769 yuan per dollar, down about 0.04 percent in Asian trade.
Escalating attacks between the US and Iran dented sentiment, pushing the dollar higher while pressuring the yuan. Iran said it launched fresh attacks on US facilities in the Gulf on Friday after a sixth consecutive night of US strikes on Iranian military facilities.
Still, the yuan is on track for its third straight week of gains, with the dollar heading towards a weekly drop after softer-than-expected US inflation reports this week led traders to cut bets on imminent rate hikes from the Federal Reserve.
Prior to the market opening, the People’s Bank of China set the midpoint rate at 6.7934 per dollar, off from
more than three-year highs reached on Thursday, and 200 pips weaker than a Reuters’ estimate.
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